Page 3460 - Week 12 - Tuesday, 11 October 1994
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Clause 8 makes it an offence for a medical practitioner to provide any professional or technical services for non-commercial surrogacy. The effect of that prohibition is to rule out all surrogacy, because nothing can happen without the assistance of skilled medical practitioners, unless we are using very natural approaches which I think many of us, when we consider the ramifications, would tend to suggest are not terribly appropriate. Accordingly, I foreshadow an amendment to clause 8 of the Substitute Parent Agreements Bill which would not prohibit assistance with the sort of altruistic surrogacy arrangements which I outlined above, but would clearly outlaw all commercial arrangements.
Similarly, I foreshadow amendments to clause 4 of the Substitute Parent Agreements (Consequential Amendments) Bill which would allow private hospitals to facilitate strictly non-commercial arrangements. My other amendment is also to clause 4 of the Substitute Parent Agreements (Consequential Amendments) Bill. The existing wording, I believe, is too vague and general. My amendment tidies up the wording of subclause 11(2) as to the Minister's power under the regulations to make it clear that cancellation of registration must be on the same grounds as the suspension for assisting with commercial surrogacy. That is simply a tidying up amendment, Madam Speaker.
I suggest that this Bill as it stands could prove very soon to be out of touch with community values, as I believe that the demand for non-commercial altruistic surrogacy is likely to increase as access to adoption becomes more and more difficult. I believe that it would be far preferable to get this legislation right and allow these sorts of surrogacy arrangements which involve the participation of the close relative - for all the right reasons which I have spoken about earlier - and the intervention of a skilled medical practitioner. I understand that the Government is willing to support these amendments tonight. I am very pleased with that. I am also very pleased to support this very important piece of legislation. Legislation of this nature has gone through most other parliaments in Australia, and I am very pleased that the ACT will be part of that approach.
MS SZUTY (10.09): Madam Speaker, earlier this year the Assembly debated the Domestic Relationships Bill 1994 - a Bill which makes provisions with respect to certain domestic relationships not covered by legislation. I believe that the Substitute Parent Agreements Bill 1994 is legislation of a similar nature. It seeks to establish a proper environment in which non-commercial surrogacy arrangements can take place, where everyone involved is happy with the process and the outcome to the maximum extent possible; and, of course, it outlaws commercial substitute parent agreements. Madam Speaker, the issue of substitute parent agreements or surrogacy has been discussed for some time now. As indicated in the Minister's presentation speech, a discussion paper was released for comment in December of 1993, with responses being due on 28 February this year. Included in the discussion paper was an exposure draft of the proposed Bill. I understand that about a dozen submissions were received - perhaps not a high number - from a range of people vitally concerned and interested in the issue.
One very sensible change which has now been made and which is reflected in the Bill in its current form is the new name for the Bill. This Bill is quite rightly now referred to as the Substitute Parent Agreements Bill rather than the Surrogacy Agreements Bill, as it was formerly known. The Minister explains in his presentation speech two reasons for the change. Firstly, the term "surrogacy" was based on the concept of the birth mother being a surrogate mother, which, of course, is not appropriate, as the woman giving birth is
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